1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to air conditioning devices and, more specifically, to an air conditioning unit that is designed to bring the ambient temperature of an interior area to a specific temperature and once having reached that temperature maintaining it thereat by introducing air that has been heated or cooled to the specific desired temperature into the room. The gas conduit and heat coil within the evaporator unit are immersed in a fluid which is heated or cooled accordingly to the selected temperature and an air current is passed through vents in communication therewith to disburse the thermally conditioned air into the interior air.
The heart of the present invention lies in the thermal control circuit which governs the administration of the device. The thermal control circuit comprises a main power switch to provide power from an AC power source, a function switch to direct current between the cooling cycle and the heat cycle, a fluid thermostat for the cooling cycle and a heat thermostat each immersed in the fluid in the evaporator unit, an air thermostat and a control unit for transferring current between the air thermostat and the fluid thermostat. The fluid thermostat controls current flow to the compressor and the condenser fan. The first operational state of the present invention is the start-up cycle which is only active when the unit is initially turned on wherein the air thermostat determines that the ambient air temperature is higher than the user selected desired temperature and operates the compressor and condenser fan constantly until equilibrium between the two is achieved. The air thermostat signals the control unit that the ambient temperature is at the desired temperature and switches to the fluid thermostat to initiate the fluid cycle wherein current to the compressor and the condenser fan is regulated by the fluid thermostat to alternate between the fluid cooling stage and the fluid maintenance stage to maintain a stable fluid temperature and, therefore, a stable real temperature output. The start-up cycle does not operate again until the unit is turned off and turned on again, it will not work at all during the remaining operation of the unit. The fluid cooling stage maintains operation of the compressor and the condenser fan to lower the fluid temperature whereas the compressor and condenser fan are disabled during the fluid maintenance stage until the fluid temperature and real temperature output rise above the desired temperature. The evaporator fan remains on to suck air from the room and push the real temperature conditioned air into the room.
The other operational state of the present invention is the heater mode wherein the function switch is selected to heater to send current to the heater thermostat to activate the heat coil and raise the temperature of the fluid and turn off the heat coil when the desired temperature has been achieved. The evaporator fan remains on to suck air from the room and push the real temperature conditioned air into the room.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are other air conditioning systems known in the art, while these air conditioning systems may be suitable for the purposes for which they were designed, they would not be as suitable for the purposes of the present invention, as hereinafter described.